Beach Survives Fay

Despite major erosion, renourishment does what it was meant to do

A beach renourishment project "did its job" during Tropical Storm Fay, say St. Johns County officials.

That meant erosion was "pretty significant, but not devastating," according to Troy Blevins, head of the county parks and recreation project.

Officials compare Fay's damage to that experienced during nor'easters rather than hurricanes. In effect, that can mean more damage, since nor'easters tend to stick around for several days with surf chewing up the beaches.

During hurricanes, the action takes place quickly as the storm rushes through.

"The beach renourishment did what it was supposed to do. ... The sand (put in under a plan designed by the U.S. Corps of Engineers at the St. Augustine Beach pier) went in the ocean and then appeared again a little farther down," Blevins said. "It makes the beaches south of there a little bit stronger."

That give-and-take action by the ocean is why every five years a new permit is pulled so that more sand may be put in as needed.

"The beach (project) is acting pretty much like it's designed to do," said county engineer Press Tompkins. "It's a 50-year plan."

Cost involved with the renourishment project has raised objections from some officials, including U.S. Rep. John Mica (Winter Park-R), who wants to see a more permanent solution. However, Tompkins said, Mica has become more amenable to the plan.

The next permit is scheduled for 2010. The project is funded in part by federal money and in part by state and local funds. The federal appropriations process is under way.

"We didn't have an excessive amount of erosion to the beach," Tompkins said. "The beach has been pretty stable since April. ... We lose some here, we gain some there. That's just a natural action."

April was when a nor'easter caused some major damage to the local coastline, particularly toward the north end of St. Johns County, where several homes were damaged due to erosion.

Blevins said the tropical storm did do major damage to the sea turtle nesting population.

"It's just that time of year," Blevins said, adding no exact numbers are available yet. "We know how much we had out there; we don't' know how much we lost."

He expects a higher percentage of destroyed nests near the south end of the county's beaches.

"I know we had 27 (nests) at Summer Haven lost," he said.

Turtles lay eggs in the sand and then return to the sea. When the eggs hatch, the young turtles head out to sea.

Blevins said older females tend to bury their eggs in the dunes, which were not hit by the storm's waves. Those eggs, he said, will have the best chance.

There are between 150 and 200 nests along the 42 miles of beaches in St. Johns County, say officials. Turtle patrols keep an eye on the nests, which are protected by law.